


Just to See You Smile

by gray_autumn_sky



Series: Set in Storybrooke, Canon Divergent [22]
Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: F/M, Hood-Mills Family
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-21
Updated: 2018-07-21
Packaged: 2019-06-13 18:28:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,954
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15370674
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gray_autumn_sky/pseuds/gray_autumn_sky
Summary: Robin, Regina and the boys attend Storybrooke’s annual town fair–an event Regina rarely enjoys, but this year, she has a surprisingly good time.





	Just to See You Smile

Regina smiles as she looks at the photo strips, realizing that these four tiny pictures are the first ever taken of them all together, as a family. The four of them are all smushed together, practically sitting on top of each other, smiling and laughing and making silly faces for the camera. They all look so happy. She laughs a little, remembering—remembering how Robin had grabbed a hold of her hand and dragged her toward the photo booth; remembering how Roland kept looking to Henry to figure out what exactly he should be doing, so much like any little brother might; and remembering how carefree and happy she felt in that moment—such a strange feeling, yet such an exhilarating one, a feeling she wished could last forever.

She hadn’t wanted to go—she never really did, and she’d told them that. She’d watched as Henry and Robin exchanged glances and the realization had set in that they’d discussed this. Of course, they’d both adamantly denied it, but Henry had never been a very good liar, and Robin’s sly grin and sparkling eyes gave him away.

It was nearly dusk when she took the stage, giving a short speech to commemorate the event. Robin, Henry and Roland stood near the front, clapping and cheering too loudly as she concluded, officially opening the annual festivities. Residents of Storybrooke filtered past the make shift stage as Henry told her she’d done a good job and Roland presented her with a caramel-dipped apple. Graciously, she’d accepted as Robin told the boys to go purchase their tickets. It was then that he stole the first kiss of the evening, smiling against her lips as he murmured that he was proud of her.

She’d pulled back, somewhat surprised—she’d merely given a speech. He’d shaken his head, though and told her that it wasn’t about the speech. He took a step back, taking her hand as his fingers folded down between hers and tugged her forward, again his eyes sparkling as he flashed her that sly smile.

They’d started with the games. Henry took the lead with these, quickly explaining them to Roland, who was all too eager to try them all. They played ring toss, threw darts at balloons, knocked down milk jugs with baseballs. She’d surprised them all when she’d easily agreed to bob for apples, and with Henry’s help, Roland won a goldfish in a marble-shooting game. Regina couldn’t help but laugh at Robin’s less than amused expression when he realized he’d be carrying around a water-filled bag for the evening as he played caretaker to Roland’s new pet.

Regina smiled as Henry took Roland’s hand, leading him to the Merry-Go-Round. She watched as Henry helped him onto one of the horses, steadying him before hopping on the one beside him and holding the smaller boy’s hand as the horse started to bob up and down as the ride spun slowly. Robin’s hands quickly found her waist, pulling her back against him and holding her as they watched, every now and then dropping a light and fleeting kiss along her jaw. And she’d melted into him.

The four of them went on the Ferris Wheel next and Roland had climbed into her lap, his hand tightening around hers as the ride lifted them higher and higher above Storybrooke. She’d leaned in, asking if he was okay, and he’d nodded and said that he would be as long as she didn’t let go of him. She’d smiled and cuddled him a little closer; it was the easiest promise she’d ever make.

When their feet were once more planted firmly on the ground, they stopped at a stand for some Italian ice and settled at a picnic table to enjoy it. She’d watched contently as Robin and Henry settled into a conversation over an archery game they’d both been eyeing. Roland clung to her side and her fingers twirled through his messy curls as he finished his treat and they’d waited, watching and cheering on Henry and Robin. She watched as Robin helped Henry settle the bow against shoulder, helping him to angle his upper body in the proper way, and giving him much more advice about shooting than necessary for this game; and she watched the excitement overtake both of them when the Henry’s arrow hit the last ring of the target. She could see her son’s smile as Robin’s hand clapped over his back, drawing him into a loose hug as the man running the game held out a selection of prizes. She couldn’t help but laugh as Robin picked up the bow and an arrow, easily letting it sail into the small center of the target, earning him his choice of the stuffed animals.

Robin leaned in and kissed her cheek as he presented her with a teddy bear that held a heart, embroidered with the word love. Though it was such a simple gesture, a token prize from a carnival, she felt moisture at the corners of her eyes. She offered him a quick, fleeting kiss as he swept Roland up into his shoulders and slid his arm around her shoulders, as Henry ran ahead to cash in the tickets he’d won for a bag of freshly spun cotton candy.

Soon after the game, Roland’s adventurous streak retuned and he and Henry continued on to the rest of the rides. She couldn’t have stopped her smile had she wanted to, watching the boys enjoying the carnival—watching the careful way Henry guided Roland, holding his hand and explaining the rides. He was settling into his newfound role of big brother nicely and with ease, and it was obvious by the Roland looked up at him, doting on Henry’s every word, that the adoration between the two was mutual.

Robin’s fingers had laced through hers as he tugged her toward the shadows. She followed curiously, smiling as he pushed her gently up against one of the building, kissing her deeply as his free hand tangled in her hair and cupped that back of her head. She’d felt her cheeks warm and a smile tug at the corners of her mouth, and when he pulled back breathlessly, she could see him grinning at her mischievously despite the dark and her own smile had deepened. She’d asked what the kiss had been for, he’d only shrugged his shoulders and said ‘just to make you smile.’ They’d kissed a few more times before moving back onto Main Street to wait for the boys, settling on a bench where they slipped into a conversation, taking bets on whether or not Roland would fall asleep on the walk home or be wired and awake for hours due to the sugar and excitement.

When the boys came running towards them, she thought the night was over—they’d played the games, ridden the rides, and eaten more junk food than they usually consumed in a month. But Henry announced that there was one last thing that needed to be done. She watched as Henry glanced at Robin and he’d nodded, again hinting that they’d talked about this. Henry took Roland’s hand and they ran into the crowd. Her eyes met Robin’s as he pulled her up and she complained half-heartedly about being too tired for any more of the night’s festivities. But as he led her into the crowd, his hand clasped firmly around hers, he insisted that this was something she’d want to do—something to commemorate a happy evening.

And he was right.

Her fingers trail over the edges of the photographs as she feels his weight sink down onto the bed beside her, and when she turns her head to look at him, she sees his blue eyes are shining and his smile is bright.

“So, you had a good time, then?”

She nods in reply, “The best.”

“Then our plan worked,” he replies gingerly, his smile victorious.

Her brow furrows instantly. “Plan? I thought the two of you didn’t have a plan.”

He leans in, chuckling softly as he kisses her forehead and takes a moment to look at the photo strip she’s holding between her fingers. “When I saw the banner advertising an annual street fair, I asked Henry about it, and he told me it’d been a Storybrooke tradition for as long as he could remember, and though you always attended, you never seemed to have a very good time. We wanted to change that.”

Her eyes fall away from his and again, she focuses on the picture. She doesn’t explain; but she doesn’t feel like she needs to.She doesn’t have to tell him how lonely she felt during the years of the Curse and she doesn’t have to tell him she’d have done anything to break up the monotony and planning these sorts of events gave her something different to do in a time when nothing was ever different; she doesn’t have to tell him that adopting Henry had made her happier than she knew was possible, but she never expected that to last, always wondering at what moment her world would come crashing down around her; and she doesn’t need to tell him that thought she’d never wanted to be Queen, she wanted to be Mayor.

Because he already knows all of those things.

“I did have a good time tonight,” she confesses in soft voice. Her smile deepens as she looks back at him. “For the first time I felt like I belonged there—that I belonged there with Henry and Roland and you. For the first time, I didn’t feel like an outsider looking in. I was just there—just like any other person, enjoying an evening out with her family.”

“I’m glad for that—you deserve that, you deserve to enjoy a little bit of happiness every now and then.”

She nods a little, smiling to herself as she places the photo strip on the nightstand beside the bear that Robin won for her earlier in the night. She tugs at the cord on the lamp, and a moment later the room is dark. She cuddles into him and he holds her against his chest, settling himself against the pillows as he exhales contently.

She feels him drifting off into sleep, feeling the way his breath grows steadier and his limbs grow heavier. She closes her eyes and when she does, she thinks of their smiles in the photographs—she thinks of Robin’s lighthearted yet passionate kisses; she thinks of the way he looked at her with so much love and adoration, and she thinks of the way the four of them had laughed together; she thinks the way Roland and Henry have bonded becoming so much like brothers, so natural and so sweet; and she thinks of the way her heart swells at the bond forming between Henry and Robin. She thinks of her family and she smiles.

Robin’s last words of the night echo in her head—happiness, always something that seemed so elusive to her, so conditional, now has suddenly become the norm for her. In the past her happiness was always hinged on something, someone, and was always so easily taken, so easily influenced by outside forces. Yet now, it’s quite the opposite. The happiness she feels with Robin and Roland and Henry is a mainstay, something that endures no matter what the world throws at her. She cuddles in a little closer, smiling as Robin’s arms instinctively adjust around her. She never thought she’d have this. She’s happy, she realizes—finally happy with the life she has, the life she fought for—and it’s a feeling that overwhelms her in the best possible way.


End file.
